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New page: The '''''Iowa''-class''' was the final series of six battleships constructed for the United States Navy, beginning with authorization in 1940, and ending with the commissioning of ...
The '''''Iowa''-class''' was the final series of six [[battleship]]s constructed for the [[United States Navy]], beginning with authorization in 1940, and ending with the commissioning of the fourth vessel, USS ''Wisconsin'' in 1944. The final two vessels were cancelled and scrapped while in the yards before launching, due to the ending of [[World War II]], as well as the battleship's replacement as the apex warship by the [[aircraft carrier]].
At 45,000 tons standard displacement, the six ships of the ''Iowa'' class were the U.S. Navy's first new World War II era battleships whose design was not encumbered by treaty limits. They were a new type for the Navy, the "fast battleship", intended to protect aircraft carriers against the threat of similar [[Japan]]ese "big-gun" ships, as well as to form a "fast wing" for the traditional battle line. Though the even-larger ''[[Montana]]'' class were designed and ordered, four of the ''Iowas'' were the last battleships ever completed for U.S. Navy service. They were also arguably the Navy's most successful battleship design and certainly had the longest service lives.
Built under Fiscal Year 1940 (BB 61 & 62) and 1941 (BB 63-66) appropriations, the ''Iowa'' class were much longer, more powerfully engined and considerably faster than the preceding ''North Carolina'' and ''South Dakota'' classes. Their main battery, nine 16"/50 guns in triple turrets, was also somewhat more powerful than the 16"/45 armament of the two earlier types. The ''Iowas''' internal armor protection scheme was similar in arrangement to that of the ''South Dakota'' class, and was designed to keep out the armor-piercing shells originally intended for their guns, though not the heavier (2700 pound) shells ultimately used.
The first two ships, ''Iowa'' (BB-61) and ''New Jersey'' (BB-62), were completed in the first part of 1943, and served through the rest of the Pacific war in the roles that had become normal for battleships by then: screening fast carrier task forces against air and surface threats, occasional shore bombardment, standing ready to haul into line of battle if the Japanese battle fleet should present itself, and providing flagships for tactical commanders. The second pair, ''Missouri'' (BB-63) and ''Wisconsin'' (BB-64), whose construction was somewhat delayed by other wartime priorities, came out to the Pacific during the war's last year. The conflict formally ended on ''Missouri's'' broad decks.
Construction of the last pair, ''Illinois'' (BB-65) and ''Kentucky'' (BB-66) stopped at or soon after the war's end, and three of the four completed ships were "mothballed" during the later 1940s. During the early 1950s, all four employed their sixteen-inch guns against enemy targets in the [[Korean War]], but they were placed in reserve later in the decade. Thinking they were obsolete, the Navy played with various schemes to convert these fast, spacious and still relatively-new ships to more modern configurations, but nothing came of those ideas. ''New Jersey'' was briefly reactivated for [[Vietnam War]] bombardment duty, and the entire quartet was modernized and placed back in service during the 1980s' defense buildup. Though their active days were numbered, ''Missouri'' and ''Wisconsin'' provided heavy gunfire support for the 1991 war with [[Iraq]], but soon rejoined their sisters in the reserve fleet. At present, all four are either serving as museums or probably soon will be, though ''Iowa'' and ''Wisconsin'' technically remain subject to a future call to seagoing duty.
The ''Iowa'' class consisted of six ships, four of which were completed. Construction of all was assigned to east coast Navy Yards.
*USS ''Iowa'' (BB-61), built at the New York Navy Yard. Keel laid in June 1940; launched in August 1942; commissioned in February 1943.
*USS ''New Jersey'' (BB-62), built at the Philadelphia Navy Yard. Keel laid in September 1940; launched in December 1942; commissioned in May 1943.
*USS ''Missouri'' (BB-63), built at the New York Navy Yard. Keel laid in January 1941; launched in January 1944; commissioned in June 1944.
*USS ''Wisconsin'' (BB-64), built at the Philadelphia Navy Yard. Keel laid in January 1941; launched in December 1943; commissioned in April 1944.
*''Illinois'' (BB-65). Under construction at the Philadelphia Navy Yard. Keel laid in January 1945. Cancelled in August 1945 when 22% complete. Scrapped on the shipway in 1958.
*''Kentucky'' (BB-66). Under construction at the Norfolk Navy Yard, Portsmouth, Virginia. Keel originally laid in March 1942; construction suspended in June 1942, resumed in December 1944 and suspended again in February 1947. Hull launched in January 1950 to clear the building dock. Sold for scrapping in 1958.
''Iowa'' class design characteristics:
*Displacement: 45,000 tons (standard)
*Dimensions: 887' (length overall); 108' 2" (maximum beam)
*Powerplant: 212,000 horsepower steam turbines, producing a 33 knot maximum speed
*Armament (Main Battery): Nine 16"/50 guns in three triple turrets
*Armament (Secondary Battery): Twenty 5"/38 guns in ten twin mountings (ten guns on each side of the ship).
[[Category:Battleships]][[Category:United States Navy]][[Category:Warships]]
At 45,000 tons standard displacement, the six ships of the ''Iowa'' class were the U.S. Navy's first new World War II era battleships whose design was not encumbered by treaty limits. They were a new type for the Navy, the "fast battleship", intended to protect aircraft carriers against the threat of similar [[Japan]]ese "big-gun" ships, as well as to form a "fast wing" for the traditional battle line. Though the even-larger ''[[Montana]]'' class were designed and ordered, four of the ''Iowas'' were the last battleships ever completed for U.S. Navy service. They were also arguably the Navy's most successful battleship design and certainly had the longest service lives.
Built under Fiscal Year 1940 (BB 61 & 62) and 1941 (BB 63-66) appropriations, the ''Iowa'' class were much longer, more powerfully engined and considerably faster than the preceding ''North Carolina'' and ''South Dakota'' classes. Their main battery, nine 16"/50 guns in triple turrets, was also somewhat more powerful than the 16"/45 armament of the two earlier types. The ''Iowas''' internal armor protection scheme was similar in arrangement to that of the ''South Dakota'' class, and was designed to keep out the armor-piercing shells originally intended for their guns, though not the heavier (2700 pound) shells ultimately used.
The first two ships, ''Iowa'' (BB-61) and ''New Jersey'' (BB-62), were completed in the first part of 1943, and served through the rest of the Pacific war in the roles that had become normal for battleships by then: screening fast carrier task forces against air and surface threats, occasional shore bombardment, standing ready to haul into line of battle if the Japanese battle fleet should present itself, and providing flagships for tactical commanders. The second pair, ''Missouri'' (BB-63) and ''Wisconsin'' (BB-64), whose construction was somewhat delayed by other wartime priorities, came out to the Pacific during the war's last year. The conflict formally ended on ''Missouri's'' broad decks.
Construction of the last pair, ''Illinois'' (BB-65) and ''Kentucky'' (BB-66) stopped at or soon after the war's end, and three of the four completed ships were "mothballed" during the later 1940s. During the early 1950s, all four employed their sixteen-inch guns against enemy targets in the [[Korean War]], but they were placed in reserve later in the decade. Thinking they were obsolete, the Navy played with various schemes to convert these fast, spacious and still relatively-new ships to more modern configurations, but nothing came of those ideas. ''New Jersey'' was briefly reactivated for [[Vietnam War]] bombardment duty, and the entire quartet was modernized and placed back in service during the 1980s' defense buildup. Though their active days were numbered, ''Missouri'' and ''Wisconsin'' provided heavy gunfire support for the 1991 war with [[Iraq]], but soon rejoined their sisters in the reserve fleet. At present, all four are either serving as museums or probably soon will be, though ''Iowa'' and ''Wisconsin'' technically remain subject to a future call to seagoing duty.
The ''Iowa'' class consisted of six ships, four of which were completed. Construction of all was assigned to east coast Navy Yards.
*USS ''Iowa'' (BB-61), built at the New York Navy Yard. Keel laid in June 1940; launched in August 1942; commissioned in February 1943.
*USS ''New Jersey'' (BB-62), built at the Philadelphia Navy Yard. Keel laid in September 1940; launched in December 1942; commissioned in May 1943.
*USS ''Missouri'' (BB-63), built at the New York Navy Yard. Keel laid in January 1941; launched in January 1944; commissioned in June 1944.
*USS ''Wisconsin'' (BB-64), built at the Philadelphia Navy Yard. Keel laid in January 1941; launched in December 1943; commissioned in April 1944.
*''Illinois'' (BB-65). Under construction at the Philadelphia Navy Yard. Keel laid in January 1945. Cancelled in August 1945 when 22% complete. Scrapped on the shipway in 1958.
*''Kentucky'' (BB-66). Under construction at the Norfolk Navy Yard, Portsmouth, Virginia. Keel originally laid in March 1942; construction suspended in June 1942, resumed in December 1944 and suspended again in February 1947. Hull launched in January 1950 to clear the building dock. Sold for scrapping in 1958.
''Iowa'' class design characteristics:
*Displacement: 45,000 tons (standard)
*Dimensions: 887' (length overall); 108' 2" (maximum beam)
*Powerplant: 212,000 horsepower steam turbines, producing a 33 knot maximum speed
*Armament (Main Battery): Nine 16"/50 guns in three triple turrets
*Armament (Secondary Battery): Twenty 5"/38 guns in ten twin mountings (ten guns on each side of the ship).
[[Category:Battleships]][[Category:United States Navy]][[Category:Warships]]